Improving School Bus Fleet Management

Kids aren’t the only ones counting the days until the end of summer. School bus fleet managers are working hard to get everything in order for the upcoming school year.

With both the responsibilities of running a fleet and keeping students safe on your shoulders, finding the right processes and tools is essential. Use these tips to maintain efficiency and prioritize safety this school year.

Improving School Bus Fleet Management

1. Stay on top of maintenance

When your drivers have a bus full of kids, any issues or risks associated with mechanical failures increase ten-fold. Breakdowns can leave students stranded, leaving you to figure out how to safely get them home. An issue such as a brake failure can cause an accident with tragic results.

You can’t guarantee that your buses will never have mechanical issues, but you can prevent severe problems.

Create a preventative maintenance schedule that covers all the basics. Make sure oil changes, tire maintenance, and other tasks are completed on time. Have a mechanic look over your buses on a regular basis to resolve any problems before they put your drivers and passengers at risk.

Drivers should also know how to react quickly and appropriately to any maintenance needs.

2. Equip your drivers to maintain safety

The best way to protect students is to train your drivers well and monitor their behavior. Before they enter their buses, your drivers should understand exactly what you expect from their driving. Go over the dangers of aggressive and unsafe driving, emphasizing the risk to passengers. Cover your guidelines in detail to make sure everyone is on the same page.

When they’re on the road, a fleet telematics solution can help you monitor each driver’s performance. Track dangerous behaviors such as speeding, harsh braking, and unsafe drop-offs. In-vehicle cameras can help you watch for inappropriate and unsafe interactions with students.

You can use this data to keep your drivers accountable. If you see a problem, you can give the driver specific ways to improve. Plus, since your team will know they’re being monitored, they will have greater incentive to drive safely.

3. Improve routing

When traffic or construction interfere with a route, your fleet telematics device can find the next best option. You can get every student home safely without extending the time and cost required.

Tracking your buses’ routes also gives parents a way to track their kids. They can see when the bus arrives so they’re never late to pick their students up. If the parents are away from home, they can see exactly when the student was dropped off and use this information to make sure they get home safe.

School bus safety starts with fleet telematics. Learn more about our GPS installations to protect your students and drivers today.